New Zealand has appointed its first-ever resident Defence Adviser to India, a move officials say underscores Wellington’s intent to strengthen security and defence cooperation with one of the world’s most strategically significant nations.
Commodore Andy Dowling will take up the newly created role at the New Zealand High Commission in New Delhi later this month, relocating from Australia with his wife, Claire. He is currently completing his term as Defence Adviser to Australia.
While New Zealand has previously accredited Defence Advisers to India, they were based in other countries. Commodore Dowling will be the first to serve full time and reside in New Delhi, marking a step-change in bilateral engagement.
The appointment follows a year of heightened defence and diplomatic activity between the two countries, including Prime Minister Christopher Luxon’s visit to India in March. That visit resulted in the signing of an India–New Zealand Memorandum of Understanding on Defence Cooperation, designed to formalise and expand regular defence engagement.
Maritime cooperation has been a key feature of the growing relationship. During the same period, New Zealand frigate HMNZS Te Kaha visited Mumbai while deployed on Combined Task Force 150 in the Western Indian Ocean. In 2025, New Zealand led the task force, with India as deputy commander, resulting in the seizure of around seven tonnes of narcotics over a three-month period.
Commodore Dowling said defence and security considerations were central to New Zealand’s engagement with India. He noted that India’s strategic outlook had shifted significantly over the past decade, moving from a predominantly domestic focus to a more outward-looking posture.
That shift accelerated with the evolution of India’s “Look East” policy into the “Act East” approach in 2014, prioritising strategic partnerships, regional connectivity and defence cooperation across the Indo-Pacific. India’s participation last year in Exercise Talisman Sabre for the first time highlighted that change, with New Delhi joining 19 other nations in the large-scale exercise hosted by Australia.
According to Commodore Dowling, the Indian Navy in particular has become increasingly active beyond the Indian Ocean, conducting joint exercises, port visits and deployments that now regularly include Australia and New Zealand.
Establishing a resident Defence Adviser in India, he said, would help ensure the relationship remains sustainable and strategic rather than episodic. “We won’t be turning up with a frigate every week,” he said, adding that a permanent presence would allow for consistent dialogue and the identification of practical areas for cooperation.
India, now the world’s third-largest economy, maintains one of the globe’s largest military forces, including a 1.3 million-strong army and a navy of about 250 vessels. Commodore Dowling said India held New Zealand in high regard, viewing it as a trusted and neutral partner.
He pointed to strong operational similarities between the two defence forces, including shared platforms such as P-8 maritime patrol aircraft, C-130J Hercules transport aircraft and naval aviation systems, as well as comparable training structures.
The New Delhi posting will run for three years. Commodore Dowling said the opportunity to establish a new role from the ground up was both rare and rewarding, describing the move as a professional privilege and a personal adventure he and his wife were keen to embrace.
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